A Chain of Amulet Stones against Throbbing Headache: Glimpses into the Dynamics of Amulet Making in Mesopotamia (original) (raw)

This paper focuses on a chain amulet from Mesopotamia, which has so far been known from the two largely unedited tablets K 4727+ and Sm 1071. Due to the fragmentary state of these sources, several questions have remained unanswered, pertaining to aspects like the exact number and type of raw materials needed to create this particular chain. Only parts of the stone list are preserved in both texts, which did not allow a complete reconstruction of the object; nor could it be established what purpose the amulet served, only that it had something to do with the patient’s head. These questions can now be answered with the help of new evidence provided by the Nineveh Medical Encyclopaedia. In addition, by exploring the differences between these sources, it might also be possible to learn about the dynamics governing the selection of stones for amulets.